Too Long You've Wandered In Winter
by sweet thyme
Summary: A god destined to be alone and a goddess destined to never be lonely . . . But Destiny can be deceiving. . .


_"My kingdom lies in eternal darkness… shrouded in the chill silence of the grave. Darkness and silence have been my companions since the day I chose to turn my back upon the world of men and create an empire that was solely mine. From the moment of my birth my destiny was to be alone."_

_-Phantom, Susan Kay_

* * *

An unfathomable wail of agony swam aimlessly through the empty air of the underworld, the silky, cold sound that shattered the silence that had moments ago been so deeply, unnaturally embedded in the chilling atmosphere, raping the ears of all submersed in the icy depths of torment that it reverberated off of cold, obsidian walls.

Hades found it perversely ironic that the only sound of human life he ever heard was their dying screams.

Each human soul floated past the Underworld God's chambers, shivering across him with the desperate plea of one whose heart and blood flow has frozen solid in a moment of frenzied panic.

_No!_ The scream seemed to echo in the helpless God's ears. _Please! I need more time! I can't die now! Not now . . . _

A mournful sigh escaped the God's lips. He wondered what the poor soul had done to deserve such an untimely death. Wondered why it so desperately craved the time on Earth that was brutally and abruptly snatched away by Death's merciless hands.

With a shudder, the shrill cry withered to a feeble moan as the spirit drifted further down the ebony marble corridor. The ethereal blue light that it emitted against the walls began to dim, the poor soul now entering the court of its imminent judgment.

Silence again encompassed air which had moments before resonated with the piercing cry of lost life. Insurmountable agony consumed by insufferably empty silence.

Hades sat on a throne carved of black pearl, which shimmered faintly the darkest shades of green and purple. His broad, powerful figure loomed ominously against the flickering light of floating candles which surrounded him, hovering about his cold seat, the light of their small flames engulfed by all-consuming darkness so that they provided hardly any relief from the shadows that draped across the room, cloaking the walls in even deeper darkness. His head was bowed as a second scream of torment swept across him, though this one was silent.

The soul that had just flown past, screaming in desperation, had been clinging to something high above that had been hastily stolen by Death's firm grip. That soul had known life and love so sweet that the emptiness of death was unbearable to it. Its flight of pleading, fearful cries had been an outburst of shock that came only with one's first encounter with death. The pleasantries of the Upperworld, the glorious warmth of Helios' sun, the serene glow of Artemis' moon, the calm, steady tide of Poseidon's sea, and the quiet breeze of Zephyr's soft breath, were all so peaceful, so enchanting, that the empty darkness of the Underworld came to that frightened spirit as unfathomable shock.

Hades had never known such a shock.

He had never had the privilege of being so thoroughly engulfed in light that the eternal darkness of death could be anything worth tormenting over.

Hades wallowed in death.

His eyes were so accustomed to the darkness that reigned in the absence of all life that even the gentlest ray of sunshine would be blinding, to him. He would never know the blessed pain of losing love, as this melancholy soul did, for he had never known love.

In all his long life, Hades had never known love.

He stood, restless suddenly in the stillness of his domain. The only sound that echoed off of the black halls of his palace was the eerie whispers of shades, shuffling with their heads bowed, seeming like empty shells where life's laughter and joy had once been present. No gales of laughter were heard now. Oh, no, not here. . .

Hades was clutched by a sudden impulse to leave his empty kingdom and journey to the Upperworld. It had, he reasoned, been nearly ten years since he had last witnessed the life and light that reigned there.

Perhaps he could venture there, just to satisfy his boredom, and his shy curiosity. Perhaps it would not be so unbearable to stand in the sunlight, as he had not, in so long.

Reason slapped him across his face.

The idea was madness!

The Earth, Hades told himself, was filled only with the things he despised. The mindless chatter of gossiping women, the thundering footsteps of oafs and drunkards, the squeals of childish adolescents, the shouts of shrill, nagging mothers, the witless arguing of ignorant men, and the empty, over dramatic orations of mindless, negligent fools. All the unbearable annoyances that Hades had deemed too obnoxious for him to stand!

It had been why he chose to rule the Underworld in the first place.

And yet to stay here, alone, always alone, with each breath he took echoing on the high ceilings, mocking him in his solitude, was growing steadily more agonizing each moment. . .

With a growl of frustration, Hades returned to his seat on the throne, brooding.

There was **nothing** and **no one **on Earth that would interest him, or ease his lonely torment; he scolded himself, spurning the idea angrily. Nothing in the Upperworld that could make him feel anything but inexplicable aggravation.

_Except . . ._

A rare smile twitched for a moment on his lips as a memory tugged fondly at his heart. A memory of innocent laughter, playful dancing, and smiling, green eyes . . .

There was _someone_. . .


End file.
